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Thursday, September 1, 2011

How The U.S. And The World Can Help Iraq

By Ayad Allawi

As
the Arab Spring drives change across our region, bringing the hope of democracy
and reform to millions of Arabs, less attention is being paid to the plight of
Iraq and its people. We were the first to transition from dictatorship to
democracy, but the outcome in Iraq remains uncertain. Our transition could be a
positive agent for progress, and against the forces of extremism, or a
dangerous precedent that bodes ill for the region and the international
community.

Debate
rages in Baghdad and Washington around conditions for a U.S. troop extension
beyond the end of this year. While such an extension may be necessary, that alone
will not address the fundamental problems festering in Iraq. Those issues
present a growing risk to Middle East stability and the world community. The
original U.S. troop “surge” was meant to create the atmosphere for national
political reconciliation and the rebuilding of Iraq’s institutions and
infrastructure. But those have yet to happen.

More
than eight years after Saddam Hussein’s regime was overthrown, basic services
are in a woeful state: Most of the country has only a few hours of electricity
a day. Blackouts were increasingly common this summer. Oil exports, still
Iraq’s only source of income, are barely more than they were when Hussein was
toppled. The government has squandered the boon of high oil prices and failed
to create real and sustainable job growth. Iraq’s economy has become an ever
more dysfunctional mix of cronyism and mismanagement, with high unemployment
and endemic corruption. Transparency International ranks Iraq the world’s
fourth-most-corrupt country and by far the worst in the Middle East.

The
promise of improved security has been empty, with sectarianism on the rise. The
Pentagon recently reported an alarming rise in attacks, which it blamed on
Iranian-backed militias. The latest report to Congress by the U.S. special
inspector general for Iraqi reconstruction notes that June was the bloodiest
month for U.S. troops since 2008 and concludes that Iraq is more dangerous than
it was a year ago. Regrettably, Iraq’s nascent security forces are riddled with
sectarianism and mixed loyalties; they are barely capable of defending
themselves, let alone the rest of the country.

Despite
failing to win the most seats in last year’s elections, Prime Minister Nouri
al-Maliki clung to power through a combination of Iranian support and U.S. compliance.
He now shows an alarming disregard for democratic principles and the rule of
law. Vital independent institutions such as the election commission, the
transparency commission and Iraq’s central bank have been ordered to report
directly to the office of the prime minister. Meanwhile, Maliki refuses to
appoint consensus candidates as defense and interior ministers, as per last
year’s power-sharing agreement.

The
government is using blatant dictatorial tactics and intimidation to quell
opposition, ignoring the most basic human rights. Human Rights Watch reported
in February on secret torture prisons under Maliki’s authority. In June, it
exposed the government’s use of hired thugs to beat, stab and even sexually
assault peaceful demonstrators in Baghdad who were complaining about corruption
and poor services. These horrors are reminiscent of autocratic responses to
demonstrations by failing regimes elsewhere in the region, and a far cry from
the freedom and democracy promised in the new Iraq.

Is
this really what the United States sacrificed more than 4,000 young men and
women, and hundreds of billions of dollars, to build?

The
trend of failure is becoming irreversible. Simply put, Iraq’s failure would
render every U.S. and international policy objective in the Middle East
difficult to achieve, if not impossible. From combating terrorism to nuclear
containment to energy security to the Middle East peace process, Iraq is at the
center. Our country is rapidly becoming a counterweight to all positive efforts
to address these issues, instead of the regional role model for democracy,
pluralism and a successful economy that it was supposed to be.

It
is not too late to reverse course. But the time to act is now. Extending the
U.S. troop presence will achieve nothing on its own. More concerted political
engagement is required at the highest levels to guarantee the promise of
freedom and progress made to the Iraqi people, who have suffered and sacrificed
so much and are running out of patience.

It
is necessary, and achievable, to insist on full and proper implementation of
the power-sharing agreement of 2010, with proper checks and balances to prevent
abuse of power, and full formation of the government and its institutions on a
nonsectarian basis. Malign regional influences must be counterbalanced. Failing
these steps, new elections free from foreign meddling, and with a truly
independent judiciary and election commission, may be the only way to rescue
Iraq from the abyss. This solution is increasingly called for by Iraqi
journalists and political leaders and on the street.

The
invasion of Iraq in 2003 may indeed have been a war of choice. But losing Iraq
in 2011 is a choice that the United States and the rest of the world cannot
afford to make.

-This commentary was published in The Washington
Post on 01/09/2011
-Ayad Allawi, a former prime minister of Iraq, leads the largest political bloc
in Iraq’s Parliament

About Me

I graduated from the French University in Beirut (St Joseph) specialising in Political and Economic Sciences. I started my working life in 1973 as a reporter and journalist for the pan-Arab magazine “Al-Hawadess” in Lebanon later becoming its Washington, D.C. correspondent. I subsequently moved to London in 1979 joining “Al-Majallah” magazine as its Deputy Managing Editor. In 1984 joined “Assayad” magazine in London initially as its Managing Editor and later as Editor-in-Chief. Following this, in 1990 I joined “Al-Wasat” magazine (part of the Dar-Al-Hayat Group) in London as a Managing Editor. In 2011 I became the Editor-In-Chief of Miraat el-Khaleej (Gulf Mirror). In July 2012 I became the Chairman of The Board of Asswak Al-Arab Publishing Ltd in UK and the Editor In Chief of its first Publication "Asswak Al-Arab" Magazine (Arab Markets Magazine) (www.asswak-alarab.com).

I have already authored five books. The first “The Tears of the Horizon” is a love story. The second “The Winter of Discontent in The Gulf” (1991) focuses on the first Gulf war sparked by Saddam Hussein’s invasion of Kuwait. His third book is entitled “Israeli-Palestinian Conflict: From Balfour Promise to Bush Declaration: The Complications and the Road to a Lasting Peace” (March 2008). The fourth book is titled “How Iran Plans to Fight America and Dominate the Middle East” (October 2008) And the fifth and the most recent is titled "JIHAD'S NEW HEARTLANDS: Why The West Has Failed To Contain Islamic Fundamentalism" (May 2011).

Furthermore, I wrote the memoirs of national security advisor to US President Ronald Reagan, Mr Robert McFarlane, serializing them in “Al-Wasat” magazine over 14 episodes in 1992.

Over the years, I have interviewed and met several world leaders such as American President Bill Clinton, British Prime Minister Margaret Thacher, Late King Hassan II of Morocco, Late King Hussein of Jordan,Tunisian President Zein El-Abedine Bin Ali, Lybian Leader Moammar Al-Quadhafi,President Amine Gemayel of Lebanon,late Lebanese Prime Minister Rafic Hariri, Late Palestinian Chairman Yasser Arafat, Haitian President Jean Claude Duvalier, Late United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan,Algerian President Shazli Bin Jdid, Jamaican Prime Minister Edward Siyagha and more...